Neo-nazi who dreamt of killing Prince Charles after being bullied over ginger hair is found guilty in terrorism trial

Target: Mark Colborne wrote about shooting Prince Charles so princes Harry of William could become King Ian Gavan - WPA Pool/Getty Images

A ginger-haired neo-Nazi who wrote of assassinating Prince Charles with a sniper rifle so Prince Harry could become king was convicted at the Old Bailey of preparing acts of terrorism.

Mark Colborne, 37, had been arrested with stockpiles of equipment and the ingredients for cyanide in his bedroom at the home he shared with his mother.

The loner blamed years of bullying over his hair colour and wrote of his admiration for the IRA because “red hair is associated with their history”.

He will be sentenced on November 3 by Judge John Bevan QC, who said he must decide whether to send Colborne to a secure mental hospital or to prison.

“This is a very strange case involving, if I may say it, a very strange person,” said the judge.

The jury only found Colborne guilty of a limited number of parts of the charges of intending to commit acts of terrorism.

By a 10/2 majority they convicted him of possessing handwritten notes copied from internet sources about making viable explosives materials and devices.

The websites included The Terrorist Handbook, The Complete Improvised Kitchen and The Jolly Roger Cookbook.

Take down a silent rifle, take up a good stalker potion and put a bullet in Prince Charles’s head. He is protected but not too protected. I would sacrifice my life for that one shot kill

Extract from Mark Colborne's documents given in evidence

He was also found guilty of having books such as Assorted Nasties, Silent Death and The Poor Man's James Bond, which contain recipes for making lethal poisons such as cyanide.

But he was cleared of the charges of possessing chemicals to produce cyanide, weighing scales, metal filter funnels and latex gloves.

He was also found not guilty of having chemicals capable of enhancing poisons to penetrate the skin and also possessing plastic syringes, screw top spray and face masks for the delivery of lethal poisons.

During the trial the court heard that Colborne had become so bitter for being “belittled' for his hair”, he allegedly wanted to kill Prince Charles so flame-haired Prince Harry could be king.

At his home in Southampton he also wrote extensively about his plans to “sacrifice my life for one shot” at Charles and launch an Anders Breivik style terror attack.

In entries dated in May and June 2012, he detailed how much he admired Breivik, the killers of black student Stephen Lawrence and Heinrich Himmler.

The court heard how Colborne wanted to “strike at the hearts of the dark-haired, darked-eyed Caucasian race.”

Loner Mark Colborne, who felt marginalised because of his hair colour, dreamt up the terror plot to transform himself from a ginger-haired victim into a notorious military terrorist.

He wrote: “I was waiting for the opportunity to kill. Please let it be Prince Charles. That would be good.

“Take down a silent rifle, take up a good stalker potion and put a bullet in Prince Charles’s head. He is protected but not too protected. I would sacrifice my life for that one shot kill.”

This is a very strange case involving, if I may say it, a very strange person

Judge John Bevan QC

Colborne went on to say that by killing Prince Charles, William and Harry would be king, and added: “Kill the tyrants.”

“If I had the right weapon, like a military grade sniper rifle, I would take out Prince Charles for the sake of the Aryan people,” he wrote.

“The first chance I would get, with a rifle, if he crosses my path is to murder Prince Charles.”

He also wrote of his admiration for the IRA and his hatred for Harriet Harman because she once described red-haired Danny Alexander as “a squirrel".

Prosecutor Annabel Darlow claimed Colborne had planned to spray cyanide at ethnic minorities to publicise his racist beliefs around the world.

But his plans were foiled when his half-brother Kevin found receipts for chemicals bought on Amazon on the landing floor while decorating in June last year and told his mother, Patricia.

Giving evidence Colborne admitted buying ingredients for cyanide but said his diary of planned attacks were nothing more than "angry rants" made when he was off medication for depression.